Good fats, what they are and how to include them in the diet: the advice of the Humanitas expert
Many think that for lose weight quickly it is necessary to eliminate fat from the diet but it is not so. Fats are used to support all the fundamental functions for the health of the organism but they are not all the same. Here are the tips on how and in what quantity to take the good fats of the doctor Elisabetta Macorsininutritionist biologist in Humanity Mother of the Lord and at the clinic Humanity Medical Care of Arese.
Good fats, what they are and how to include them in the diet
I good fats they have several useful functions and some are essential for the proper functioning of our body. These include:
- Protect and support organs
- Improve cell membrane health
- They support the construction of vital molecules such as hormones
- They contribute to the synthesis of hemoglobin and blood coagulation
- They promote the growth of the organism
- They help the body’s communication system
Good fats what they are
Lipids are commonly divided into saturated fats e unsaturated fats. The former have animal origin and are found in products such as butter, lard, meat and cheese and in some vegetable products such as margarine. Saturated fats promote the high cholesterolwhat can be fought with the support of an unexpected ally. I unsaturated fats instead they help to dispose of the “bad” LDL cholesterol and are found in large categories of products of plant or animal origin. This lipid category is divided into:
- monounsaturated: present mainly in vegetable oils, avocado, almonds, hazelnuts or pistachios
- polyunsaturated (or Pufa): found in fish (especially blue fish), vegetable oils and dried fruit. In particular, they contain Omega 3 and Omega 6
How many good fats per day
Every day we should take a certain amount of good fats to help the body stay healthy. Each gram of lipids provides about 9 calories. Although good fats are indispensable for the body, obviously we must not exceed them. In this sense the Mediterranean diet it is the best choice in terms of diet. Specifically, they must be assumed
- 55% carbohydrates
- 10-15% protein
- 25-30% fat, which is about 70 grams on an average 2000-calorie-a-day menu
Good fats and diet: how to eat them correctly
To insert i good fats in the diet some types of food must be preferred. As mentioned above, you shouldn’t overdo it and for this reason you need to be very careful with the quantities. Diet expert tips are:
- Use extra virgin olive oil instead of butter
- Eat 30 g of dried fruit per day (walnuts, peanuts, almonds, etc.)
- Dress the salad with vegetable seeds
- Eat food seaweed
- Prefer free pasture chicken eggs
- Reduce the consumption of packaged snacks and “processed” fat products such as French fries
- Prefer a home-cooked dish over a packaged one
- Limit fatty cheeses and red meats
As regards specifically the quantities of fats to be taken daily, experts recommend taking them divided as follows:
- saturated fatty acids less than 10% of the total energy
- monounsaturated fatty acids between 10% and 15% of the total energy
- polyunsaturated fatty acids between 5% and 10%
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